Coffee man passed out at wheel, car in the ditch

A Coffee County man was jailed on DUI and drug charges, but law enforcement didn't exactly have to chase him down. In fact, he was sleeping peacefully, in his car, which was stuck in ditch, early Friday morning.

The Douglas – Coffee HEAT Unit was went to Jet Foods, on U.S. Highway 441 South, just after midnight.

A Georgia State Trooper also arrived, and they saw the vehicle in the ditch with the reverse lights on, and engine running.

30-year-old Casey Larue Merritt, appeared to be asleep at the wheel, and officers saw a syringe in his lap.

Merritt had a suspected Fentanyl patch, a highly addictive prescription narcotic commonly misused by extracting the medication and injecting with a syringe. Other drug-related objects and paraphernalia were were found in the vehicle.

Merritt was taken to Coffee Regional Medical Center for treatment, and then to jail.

He has been charged by the Georgia State Patrol with driving under the influence, and faces additional drug charges pending further investigation.